Brotherly Love
by Lady Saffir
Summary: Bella discovers the joys of having older brothers. I popped my head over the edge of the bed as the bedside lamp was switched on, showing Emmett and Jasper sitting on the floor, clutching their sides while they laughed.


Brotherly Love By: Lady Saffir Rating: PG (language)

DISCLAIMER: I own no rights to the wonderful Twilight universe that Stephenie Meyer created. I'm just playing with her characters for a bit.

"Bye, Rose. You and Alice have fun."

Emmett shut the car door, watching till the tail lights rounded the first bend of the long drive. He turned to grin at Jasper, rubbing his hands together in anticipation. "Alright, the girls are gone, Edward's gone, and Carlisle's gone. That only leaves Esme to deal with. How're we gonna get her out of the house at just the right time?"

Jasper turned to stare at his brother, wondering what plan he had concocted now. He was usually foiled in his attempts at practical jokes due to Alice and Edward's gifts, so no doubt something truly horrible was planned.

"Why do we need Esme out of the house?" Jasper wondered, idly thinking about running and catching up to his wife's car. If he wasn't in on the planning, Edward couldn't be upset with him. Obviously Emmett planned on doing something to Bella, and he wasn't sure he wanted to be around when the joke unfolded.

"Cause, man. Edward NEVER leaves Bella alone without having Alice or Carlisle around. We'll never get a chance like this again! Her days of sleeping are numbered, and I thought of the best practical joke we could pull on her."

Jasper considered his options. He could rat Emmett out to Esme, or stand guard over Bella.

Or he could join Emmett in his little joke, providing it wasn't dangerous to Bella. He truly did consider her his little sister. And weren't big brothers supposed to embarrass their little sisters as often as possible?

Only a second had passed while he considered his choices before nodding to Emmett that he was in.

Bella POV

I was in Edward's room curled up on his (our!) bed, wishing futily that he was here to sing me to sleep. I had gotten spoiled in that regard. Sleep never came so easily or so deeply when he wasn't at my side, his cold body a wonderful contrast to the warmth of the comforter. He and Carlisle were running an 'errand', and judging by the smirk he wore, I didn't want to know. Ignorance truly was bliss at times.

The clock on the stereo was approaching midnight before my eyes truly felt heavy. I closed my eyes gratefully, hoping that when I opened them next, Edward would be next to me.

"Yo, bro," Emmett greeted Edward when he answered his cell. "When will you and Carlisle be home?"

"We should be there in fifteen minutes. Alice and Rosalie are right behind us," Edward replied. "Why?" The worried tone had Emmett laughing as he idly twirled a can of shaving cream in his hand. "No reason, just wanted to know when I could check out Bella's new ride."

"Where's Esme?"

"She's working at the cottage, figured she'd get some stuff done while you guys were gone. So it's just me and Jasper at the house right now."

"Emmett..."

"Jeez, man, you need to relax. Bella's fine, she's been upstairs and asleep for a couple of hours now. I'm sure she's getting lonely though," he teased, setting down the can of shaving cream to check the batteries of the flashlight. "We'll be waiting for you. Bye."

The two brothers started up the stairs, silently entering Edward's room. Bella had stopped muttering about half an hour ago and was in a deep sleep, which was pivotal to Emmett's plan. They crouched at the edge of the bed, listening intently for the sound of cars turning on to the drive.

Only seven minutes had passed since Emmett had talked to Edward, yet he wasn't at all surprised to hear the quiet purr of an engine so quickly. "Show time."

"We're dead if Bella get injured, you realize this," Jasper whispered, moving to uncap the shaving cream.

Bella POV

Something tickled my nose, pulling me from my slumber. I twitched my face against the pillow but the tickle followed, enough of a light tease against my skin that I could stand it no longer. I reached up with one hand to shove whatever it was away, my mind realizing too late that there was already something in my palm. The shock of something cool against my face had me pulling my eyes open blearily.

"What...?" I mumbled, trying to focus. My optic nerves finally decided to cooperate, and I fully opened my eyes...to discover a disembodied face floating mere inches from my own.

The dark, tormented eyes surrounded by the deathly pale features and illuminated from below had me shrieking at the top of my lungs as I tried to free myself from the covers. I shot across the bed, slamming in to the wall and tumbling to the floor, the sheet fluttering down on top of me.

The laughter coming from the room made no sense to me at first, but when I heard Edward shout my name from downstairs everything came together. I popped my head over the edge of the bed as the bedside lamp was switched on, showing Emmett and Jasper sitting on the floor, clutching their sides while they laughed.

"Damnit!" I growled, launching myself across the bed to smash in to Emmett's bulk. "What the hell is wrong with you?!" I screeched, ignoring the door as it opened to admit the rest of the family. I smacked my left hand against Emmett's rock hard shoulder, yelling again as my palm smarted. "Damnit!" I repeated, shoving away from Edward's brother.

Edward was pulling me in to his arms, his hands running down my limbs, assessing for any injury. "Bella, are you alright?" He asked, scowling down at his still laughing brothers. "I'm going to kill you both," he hissed.

"I get first dibs," I reminded him. "Jacob said a baseball bat would work against his thick head - do you think it would work on Emmett's as well?" I asked, absently rubbing my hand. That reminded me of what had originally woken me, and I looked down to find myself covered with bits of shaving cream. I wiped my cheek, discovering more of the stuff.

"You'd probably break the bat," Rosalie said, rolling her eyes at her husband. "Honestly, how old are you?" she asked rhetorically, staring down at him in disapproval.

Alice appeared at my side, towel in hand. I took it gratefully, wiping my face and arms off before attempting to salvage my sleeping apparel. I dabbed ineffectually at my shirt, only succeeding in grinding the foam further in to the fabric.

"Just you wait, Emmett. Give me a few months then I'm going to kick your ass," I growled, ignoring Esme's soft, "Language, Bella."

"Why aren't you threatening Jasper too? He helped," Emmett pointed out, wrapping me in his arms in a lightning fast move. "'Sides," he laughed, pulling me up to plant a loud kiss on my mouth. "It's just 'cuz we love you."

I snorted, feeling like an idiot with my feet dangling in the air. "Uh huh, sure. Love you too. Now, can you please put me down so I can find something to wear to bed?"

Alice was at my side and tugging me towards the bathroom as soon as my feet touched back to earth. "You three, go outside and pound on each other," she ordered, waving her husband and brothers out the door. "You," a finger jabbed in Edward's direction had him pausing, "come back in five minutes. And YOU," the hand at my elbow was like a steel vise, "come with me."

I was hauled in to the large airy room and ordered to strip before my soon to be sister flitted out the door. She was back before I could completely disrobe, sighing with impatience.

"Hurry, Bella. We have to get you in to your new pajamas in two minutes," she chided. "And there's no point in arguing, I've already seen you wearing them."

This statement did nothing to alleviate any concerns I might have regarding Alice's idea of appropriate bedtime attire. I eyed the clothing she held with a good bit of trepidation. She had been out shopping yesterday so it was hard to tell what she had come home with. I took the bundle of clothing gingerly, handling them as if I expected them to rear up and bite me. I shook them out, staring at one of Edward's shirts and a pair...of boxers? The blush roared across my cheeks and I knew I looked like an over-ripe tomato.

"Alice!" I hissed, shoving the clothes back at her. "I can't wear Edward's clothes!"

Alice rolled her eyes, the shake of her head sending her spiky hair flying. "Bella, Edward has only worn the shirt. The boxers are fresh out of the package, I promise you."

I shook my head, grabbing a towel from the cabinet to wrap around myself. "No, Alice. I'll just..." I trailed off as I tried to think of a suitable alternative.

"You'll just...what? Sleep in the nude? Borrow one of Emmett's shirts? You aren't getting any of Jaspers, I assure you."

The silence stretched out before Alice spoke again. "Bella, Edward is absolutely going to LOVE seeing you in his clothes, I promise you. And you have thirty seconds before he's up here wanting to know how you're doing. I'm leaving. Wear the clothes," she advised, opening the door a crack before slipping out.

I was beat and I knew it. I sighed and pulled on Edward's dark blue button down shirt, turning my head to sniff at the collar. It smelled strongly of his unique scent and I inhaled deeply and smiled despite myself. I was never washing this shirt.

I stepped in to the bedroom knowing that Edward was waiting for me. He was nothing if not punctual. I couldn't bring myself to meet his gaze. What would he think, seeing me so casually attired in his clothes?

His gasp pulled my eyes up. His eyes were wide and I was fairly certain he had stopped breathing.

"I'm sorry, Edward," I apologized. "This is Alice's idea of appropriate pajamas. If you'd like, I'll find something else-"

"No." The emphatic tone cut me off. "In fact, you can have all of my clothes. You look much better in them than I do."

I blushed at the compliment, not quite able to believe it. "Mmm," I replied. "Now that I'm here, and you're here, and your brothers AREN'T here, how about we go back to bed?"

Air whistled past my ears and I found myself in bed, the comforter wrapped around my body with Edward tucked tightly behind me. "Remind me to forgive Emmett and Jasper in the morning," Edward murmured in my ear before beginning to hum my lullaby in to the quiet dark of our room. 


End file.
